| Green Branches Many of
the tree branches that I'll use to make a flute, I will have gathered
green, some of them from the branch pile at a wonderful nature
preserve, Descanso
Gardens. There, after being trimmed by the gardeners or newly
wind
felled, they await the steel jaws of the wood chipper, to be mulched
into
soil again under the leaves of other trees. Life is a circle in
that way for all us. In those green branches, though, the
life force of the tree is still present, still protecting the branch
from
those wood chippers of nature -- insects, the elements and
biodegration. This
is when I like to gather a branch for a potential flute.
 In a green branch, the
unique colors of the specific tree are still clear and bright and
the bark is still tight to the sapwood. The branch has not
cracked or checked on its surface or ends. Its
original qualities have not yet been lost. Qualities
that will remain after drying in a hot box, as long as the
branch is sealed properly.
Any
lichen or moss growing on the side of the branch can even be
preserved, as in the Ginkgo branch flute pictured to the right.
By starting with a green branch the finished flute can still radiate
signs that the dryad, spirit,
or life
force of a tree is inhabiting it, though now the leaves of that branch
be music. Once it
loses its life force and has been given back to the
ground, other "spirits" will start to inhabit the branch. The
elements and the critters of biodegration are the good earth's way of
laying claim to it again. And that's ok, I've
made some wonderful flutes, and will continue to do so on occasion,
from branches that fell from the
tree, inlaying the worm holes
or surface checks with colorful stone. If the branch has been
dead long enough, I
won't have to worry
about drying it, since the elements will have done it for
me. The
intent here is not to state that working with a green branch is
a better way of making a flute. Just another way,
with its own
advantages.
What I show in the following pages are the steps I take in turning a green branch into a dry flute blank, ready to be worked as a native style flute after it's dried in the hot box. How I make the flute after that is for another article. For those interested, there are several good resources that teach how to make a native style flute, available in book or DVD format, that can be found on the web. There are also a couple of very good online forums where you can ask for advice or research the archives for every stage of the native flute making process: http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/basic_naf_making/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nativeflutewoodworking/ I owe much in gratitude to the many flute makers who've been willing to share their knowledge. Also to the experience of wood turners and chair makers who work with green wood. Hopefully the information in these few pages will give something back. ~ Jon
Sherman
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